I woke up to this, this morning & felt that I should share it here:

"Reuters

3:56 p.m. MDT, September 19, 2011

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" law for gay personnel is slated to run out as scheduled on Tuesday, the armed forces said, ending a 17-year rule fraught with controversy.

Pentagon spokesman George Little said on Monday that repeal of the law would mean gay and lesbian service members may be open about their sexual orientation, according to the Armed Forces Press Service.



Little said the Defense Department was ready for repeal.

"This is something that has been known for a long time," he was quoted as saying. "We've gone through a process to certify repeal."

President Barack Obama in December signed a repeal of the ban into law in December. More than 13,000 homosexuals have been expelled from the armed services for revealing their sexual orientation since the policy took effect in 1993 under then-President Bill Clinton.

Little said nearly all service members had taken training associated with the law's repeal. Recruiters are accepting enlistment applications from openly gay and lesbian applicants, he said.

Three months before Congress passed the repeal, a gay rights group, the Log Cabin Republicans, won a landmark court decision striking down the rule.

The court said the law infringed on the constitutional free-speech and due-process rights of homosexuals in the armed forces.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is weighing whether to affirm or overturn the decision declaring the ban unconstitutional.

Marine Corps Commandant General James Amos argued against the repeal last year, saying lifting the ban could harm troops' combat effectiveness.

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and Navy Admiral Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will discuss the repeal of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" law on Tuesday at a news conference.

(Reporting by Ian Simpson, Editing by Greg McCune)"

Source: http://www.fox13now.com/news/sns-rt-us-usa-gays-militarytre78i53w-20110919,0,3887330.story

My thoughts: "gay and lesbian service members may be open about their sexual orientation, according to the Armed Forces Press Service.
" **Applaudes** It's about damn time!!! :)

i wish there was a like button!!!!! i had the same thought! Its about damn time!

I can't believe such a law was ever put in place to begin with. It's a blatant infringement on their rights. Allowing openly gay people in the military hurts "combat effectiveness" no less than allowing women. The only thing hurting combat effectiveness is one's own personal prejudices. The people you serve with are as close to you as your family, and if you can't get past the trivial fact that some of them are gay, then you are the problem.

that is EXACTLY how I feel. Well put, ~Aiure!

I'd be super stoked but it took the U.S. way too fucking long to get here. This is like..one of those things that i just can't applaud. It's like giving someone an extra vacation day because they did what's in their job description. This shouldn't have even been a THING, this shouldn't have ever even been a SLIGHT issue, and the fact that it took us THIS LONG to come to a point where FINALLY logic ruled over ignorance? That's..i really can't do anything but shake my head and look for apartments in Canada.

Saw this video on yahoo with the article that was written. I got very teary eyed. This is an amazing story. Link

i watched that earlier. what a great relief for him. go his dad too for just loving his son.

Yeah. When I was listening to his Dad it made me think of mine. I know my step-dad would love me no matter what. My Biological dad is such a homophobic that he'd seriously flip his lid. So it's nice to see that there are people out there that have dads that no matter what they love their child(ren)

this is sick!!! now we will have to deal with our men DISTRACTED in the battle field because they cant keep there eyes off the STRAIGHT (MORAL) men who defend our country.

AMERICA used to be a great country!!!

*lol*

And the straight men just simply won't be able to function now that there's women in the military either, right? Oh wait.. it takes a highly developed brain to interpret sarcasm--Let me dumb it down for you: You are an idiot and you need to go play with your toys in the back yard like a good little boy. Let the grown ups do the talking, m'kay?

hidden whatever-how old are you? 25? i am 56 years old. when you get to be my age, maybe you will have a little bit of understanding of how the world works! until then you can just keep your little mouth shut.

Hey Conservative Values: Fuck off & take your negative attitude with you! Self righteous prick!

so let me get this straight. i am defending myself with comments like "You are an idiot and you need to go play with your toys in the back yard like a good little boy. Let the grown ups do the talking, m'kay?" but because you disagree with me, i am self righteous?

you need to take some time away from the computer, little girl. if you cant stand the heat, get out of the kitchen!!!

Get with the times, Gramps. Did you know that it is the year 2011, & by golly!!! We have a BLACK PRESIDENT (not saying I agree with our new found "Obama-nation"), however the world is quite different now & I'm sure you've noticed that things have changed since you were a kid (guessing around the time you fell off your dinosaur & broke your wooden underroos). Stating that "America use to be a good country" & implying that it no longer is due to the fact that gays no longer have to hide their sexual preference while serving in the military, is just not right, IMO.
Do you really think that it's going to bring America down anymore than it already is just because 2 people of the same sex are allowed to hold hands & bump uglies & openly discuss their sexual preference while serving in the armed forces? Who gives a fuck if homosexuals join the military. They are all fighting for the same cause, regardless of who they choose to be with. They stand up and fight for what they feel is right, and that takes courage! I support it fully! :)

Haha! Nope, Grandpa! You love the country that lets me speak my mind. If you don't stand up for the rights of your enemies then you stand for nothing. Gotta love free speech ;)

hidden-then i will continue posting what ever i want with out letting the "grown ups" (HA!) alone...

@ Conservative Values: Gay men think about sex just as often as straight men. So really, by your logic, women shouldn't be allowed to serve either, because they'd distract those straight, moral men. So. The military would be full of sexually frustrated straight men. Sexual frustration requires an outlet, and a lot of those men would use their guns, thus killing a lot of innocent people. Alternatively, they will relieve those frustrations on prostitutes - most of which aren't in the industry by choice. Or, even worse, they'd relieve their frustrations on one another. So, essentially, your moral, straight men could quite likely turn into sodomites.

aiure-so when do straight moral men have sex parades with naked women and perverted dancing???

they dont. but the gays do. that tells me that they all think about sex far more than the straight moral men do.

Are you referring to the Gay Pride Festival?

where have you been to a pride festival that involved naked women?
i've been to plenty of festivals & have yet to see that, so apparently i'm going to the wrong ones?
/kicks dirt. i feel like i've been shorted of naked boobies.
sad panda face.

@Conservative Values re: Naked Women and Perverted Dancing. Straight men don't celebrate naked women and perverted dancing? They might not have a parade (and I've never seen a gay pride parade that does either) but for them Straight men there are strip clubs, playboy magazine, red-light-row...They're hardly innocent. If you don't like gay men--why do you think about them so much? I mean, look how often you have visited this thread and every time you have to read or reply to something you have to think about gay men and women 'doin the dirty.' You know, relationships aren't all about that. I am straight but I believe that people who are not still deserve the same rights and opportunities that I am afforded. We had the civil rights movement, we had the woman's rights movement. You are right in the middle of the gay right's movement. You may not agree, but we shall overcome people like you the same way our ancestors did. The reason people get so offensive and make this personal for you is because it's a very personal and painful subject. How would you like your wife to be dying in a hospital bed on the other side of the wall and you couldn't go to her because you were not next of kin or a spouse? That is the most trajic heart-breaking thing I have ever witnessed, and I will fight until the day comes when there is equality among the orientations.

@ Conservative Values: Are you using "sex" in the context of gender or in the context of sexual acts? If the former, straight men have never needed to have parades for such a thing, since they've been the dominant gender in nearly every single part of the world for - literally - ages. If the latter, well...all you need to do is look at any modern celebration (eg: Mardi Gras, Carnivale, etc, etc). Most people (yes, including straight, moral men) utilise these celebrations to indulge in food, drink, and debauchery.

On the same subject, I have to wonder how a straight, moral man fathers children. Sex itself is a perverted act, whether it's for procreation or simply for fun, and it most often performed in the nude. Is sex offensive to a straight, moral man such as yourself?

I honestly do not know where you get off thinking that a man is moral because he is straight? Define moral because I know many straight man who have and are anything but! It is in fact one of the biggest faults they have because they lack morals! So, please tell me where you get this. I'd also like to tell you that regardless of a man or woman's sexual preference it has NOTHING to do with how well he/she defends his country and or performs his job. Why can't you have a sense of good humor and think and that as long as someone likes looking at your ass, though I don't know who would! That they might try just a little bit harder to make sure it's safe? lol You are a mangy old fart and a hateful old bastard. FYI.

ooooh, you called me ugly! good one! you are nearly 30 years old. it is time to start acting your AGE, not your SHOE SIZE!!